Minister’s ‘reckless’ A&E move slammed

Patients will be diverted under plan to ease staff pressure

PATIENTS will be turned away from A&E departments and told to look after themselves under ‘reckless’ new plans unveiled by the health secretary.

Humza Yousaf has issued guidance for emergency departments that would also see them refer patients to GPs or pharmacies in a bid to reduce record waiting times.

It follows another week where A&E waiting time performance has fallen to a record low, with 30.4 per cent of patients not seen within the four-hour target.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) also revealed the shortfall in registered nurses had risen to a record high.

Despite patient numbers being signifi

‘Waiting times have spiralled’

cantly lower than before the pandemic – September 2021 saw 19,417 fewer patients attend A&E compared to September 2019 – the percentage of patients seen the target time has plummeted over the past year.

Scottish Tory health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said: ‘Humza Yousaf has failed to get on top of a full-blown crisis in A&E.

‘On his watch, waiting times have spiralled out of control and have hit new lows week after week.

‘He is now looking to pass the buck to other parts of our health service which are also overwhelmed. Patients will not be reassured by this new guidance.

‘It is not their fault that they are having to endure record waits in A&E.

‘Humza Yousaf must guarantee that no patient will be turned away from A&E if they need urgent care.’

The guidance being issued by the Scottish Government is based on a redirection policy already in use in NHS Tayside. Mr Yousaf said the aim is to get patients to the most appropriate place for their ailment and free doctors for emergency care.

The guidance provides a script for senior nurses and doctors to go through with patients to see if they require emergency treatment or could be seen elsewhere.

Labour health spokesman Jackie Baillie said: ‘Imposing harsh restrictions at A&E without improving access to other services in the system will only pile on the pressure elsewhere in our overstretched health service.

‘We need a real plan to support health boards instead of this condescending and reckless advice.’

Mr Yousaf said: ‘It is widely recognised that more people could be better seen away from hospital by a more appropriate care provider such as a pharmacy or GP practice or indeed, managed with self-care guidance.

‘We have invested £27million towards the Redesign of Urgent Care to ensure people receive the right care, at the right place.

‘This guidance will form part of this work and will help our healthcare staff safely signpost people to care more appropriate to their need in the right place and at the right time for their condition.’

Royal College of Emergency Medicine vice president (Scotland) Dr John Thomson said it was ‘essential we have the capacity to care for those who require the skill and expertise of the emergency department team’ and the guidance would help staff redirect other patients elsewhere.

Meanwhile, NHS figures show a shortfall of 3,400 full-time nurses.

Colin Poolman, RCN Scotland interim director, said: ‘Members are telling us there aren’t sufficient numbers of nursing staff and this is putting them under pressure.

‘More needs to be done to encourage experienced staff to stay and to ensure there is a plan to increase the future workforce.’